Chord-playing keyboard musical instrument



April 10, 1962 c. J. MERCHANT WORD-PLAYING KEYBOARD MUSICAL INSTRUMENT FiledNov. 25, 195s 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 l INVENTOR. CHARLES J. MERCHANT Figa ATTORNEY April 10, 1962 c. J. MERCHANT 3,028,780

cHoRD-PLAYING KEYBOARD MUSICAL INSTRUMENT Filed'Nov. z5. 1958 4 sheets-sheet' 2 Fig.4 42 4') im @f Fig? INVENTOR.

CHARLES J. MERCHANT ATTORNEY April 10, 1962 c. J. MERCHANT 3,028,730

cHoRD-PLAYING KEYBOARD MUSICAL INSTRUMENT Filed Nov. z5, 195s 4 sheets-sheet s INVENTOR. CHARLES J. MERCHANT ATTORNEY April 10, 1962 c. J. MERCHANT eHow-PLAYING KEYBOARD MUSICAL INSTRUMENT Filed Nov. 25, 1958 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 IN VEN TOR. CHARLES J. MERCHANT A TORNEY 3,028,780 CHORD-PLAYING KEYBARD MUSICAL INSTRUMENT Charles J. Merchant, Cleveland Heights, Ohio, assigner to Homer W. Giles, University Heights, Ohio Filed Nov. 25, 1958, Ser. No. 776,316 1t) Claims. (Ci. Sri-404) This invention relates to a chord-playing keyboard musical instrument, particularly a toy piano.

A number of different types of chord-playing arrangements have been proposed heretofore for full-sized pianos and organs. All such previously proposed chord player/s` are constructed to be positioned overlying thel keyboard of the piano or organ and are arranged to press downward on the keys which make up a chord when the corresponding linger-operated chord-playing member, such as a button, is operated. V

In most instances, such chord players obstruct the underlying piano keys to such an extent that those keys cannot be played conveniently in the usual manner as long as the chord player is in place. This makes it irnpossible to play some tunes where the low notes in the melody fall-within the range of the chord keys. And

even where the chord player does not physically obstructV the keys to this extent, the space taken'up by the chord player from front to back overlying the keyboard makes such a cho-rd player totally unsuitable for use on a toy piano, where the keys are of reduced size.

The present invention is directed to a novel chord-playing keyboard instrument of the piano type which is cornpletely free of these dii'liculties and disadvantages. In the present invention, the finger-operated chord-playing members are mounted in such a manner that they do not in any way obstruct the keyboard of the piano, so that all of the piano keys are accessible to be played individually in the usual way, even the keys in the chord range. Moreover, the chord playing mechanism of the present invention is arranged to lift upward on the back ends of the piano keys to play the corresponding musical notes, rather than playing downward on the keys. Because of this novel arrangement, the chord player need not be positioned directly overlying the keys, and the problem of accommodating the chord player to the rather short front-toback length of the keys on a toy ,piano is completely eliminated.

It is an object of this invention to provide a keyboard musical instrument having a novel and improved chordplaying arrangement.

It is alsoan object of this invention to provide a keyboard'musical instrument having a novel and improved chord-playing arrangement Whichdoes not obstructthe keyboard and which doe-s not interfere with the playing of any of the keys manually in the usual manner.

Another object of this invention is to provide a novel and improved chord-playing keyboard musical instrument in which the keys which correspond to the chord being played are visible and go down when the chord is played, thereby giving a visual indication of how that chord should be played manually on the keyboard.

Another object of this invention isV to provide a toy piano having a novel and improved chordV playing arrangement which enhances its educational value.

A further object of this invention is to provide a toy piano having a novel and improved chord-playing arrangement which does not require substantial modification of the standard portion of the piano itself in order to yaccommodate the chord-playing mechanism.

A further object yof this invention is toV provide a novel and improved chord-playing toy -piano which is inexpensive to construct, is entirely mechanical in Vits operation,

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and is rugged and capable of withstanding hard usage over a period of time.

Further objects and advantages of this invention will be apparent from the following description of presentlypreferred embodiments thereof which are illustrated in the accompanying drawing.

In the drawing:

FIGURE 1 is a fragmentary perspectiverview of one embodiment of a chord-playing piano embodying the present invention, taken from the front of the piano;

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary vertical section through the piano, taken from front to back along the line 2--2 in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary plan view of the piano with the top removed;

FIGURE 4 is a transverse vertical sectional view taken along the line 4 4 in FIGURES 2 and 3;

FIGURE 5 is a fragmentary exploded perspective view showing all of the separate chord-playing'levers in the present piano and indicating the musical notes played thereby;

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary perspective view on an enlarged scale showing a single piano keygand the tone bar striker operated thereby, along with an actuatorV which is operated by one of they chordaplaying levers for actuating this key when the leveris depressed; FIGURE 7 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view taken from front to back above the top of the pianoy generally by the reference numeral 10 and running from is to be played primarily in the'higher octave of the keyboard although, if necessary, the melody may extend down into the loweroctave of the keyboard since the chord playing mechanism does not obstruct the -lower octave keys in any way. This arrangement of the chordplaying buttons at the top of the piano, proper and completelyrout of the way of the keyboard constitutes an extremely advantageous arrangement in a toy piano since the playing of the chords does not in anyway interfere with the playing of the melody.

Referring particularly to FIGURES 2 and 3, the piano has a front panel or key stripv 13 which extends down from the top 11 to a position just slightly above the keyboard 1t). A rigid rod 14 of circular cross section is iixedly mounted at the opposite sides of the piano and extends horizontally from side to side` a short distance ibelow the lower end of panel 13. This rod 14 provides a pivotal support'for each of the keys 15 which make up the keyboard. Midway along its length, each individual key is formed with a downwardly facing recessi 16 which hasa semi-circular closed upper end resting on theiixed pivot rod 14. Throughout its length each key 15 is hollowed 'out at its under side to present a downwardly-facing recess 17 (FIGURE 6). t A short distance rearward from its pivotal support on rod 14, each key is formed with an arcuate recess 1S in its top face. At 'its back end, each key presents a pair of laterally spaced, upstanding protrusions 19 and '20.

Each key is arranged to operate a striker, which cornprises a rounded head 21, an elongated dat, thin arm 22 which extends rearward from the head 21, and an arcuate loop portion 23 at the back end of the arm 2.2. As best seen in FIGURE 2, the loop portion 23 is rotatably mounted on a fixed pivot rod 24, which extends from side to side across the piano. The loop portion 23 of each. striker extends slightly more than half way around the pivot rod 24 to ensure that the striker will not 'become disconnected accidentally from the pivot rod 24. Preferably the striker is an integral, one-piece, rigid structure. lt may be formed of a plastic or other suitable material. The rounded head 21 on the striker is positioned to seat in the recess 18 in the key when the key is at rest, at which time the key extends horizontally, as shown in full lines in FIGURE 2.

When the front end of the key is depressed forcefully in the usual'manner employed in playing a piano, the back end of the key pivots upward and throws the rounded head 21 on the striker upward into engagement with the overlying tone bar 25 to sound a musical note. This action is shown in dotted lines in FIGURE 2. It is importantto note thatthis is a percussive effect, which depends upon striking-the piano key 15 rather quickly, so that the striker is forcefully thrown free of the key itself. The amount of upwardmovement of the back end of the piano key is definitely limited by the front panel 13 on the piano, so that if the key were depressed very slowly and the striker head 21 were simply carried upward by the key, continuing to rest in the recess 18 in the key, the

Y striker head would never touch the overlying sounding bar 25. Thus, the playing of the keys and the operation f the sounding means thereby in this toy piano will be seen to be distinctly different from the action which takes place in an organ, which does not depend upon this percussion action.

The sounding bars 25 are in the form of elongated metal rods of round cross section which extend horizontally from front to back well below the piano top 11. Each of these rods is formed with a tapered, reduced diameter front end 26 which is mounted in cantilever fashion in a rigid metal member 27 which extends from side to side across the piano just behind the front panel 13 and which, is rigidly supported from the piano housing. As shown in FIGURE 3, there is one such sounding bar 25 for each key on the keyboard 10. vThe sounding bars are of progressively decreased lengths from left to right across the piano, so that each sounding bar produces a successively higher note when the corresponding key is played. It should be kept in mind that with this arrangement every key on the keyboard can be played in the usual manner to produce the corresponding musical note, and the chord playing mechanism, to be described now, in no way inter- Sferes with the playing of the keys in the usual manner.

Turning now to the chord-playing mechanismof the present invention, the chord buttons 12 are arranged in two rows from side to side on the piano top. The four buttons in the front row, going from left to` right, are arranged to play the following major chords respectively: D dat, F, C, and G. The `four buttons in the back row are arranged to play the following chords, beginning with the left hand button and proceeding to the right: F7th, C7th, G7th and D7th. The respective rows are staggered so that the F major button in the front row is closest to the F7th button in the back row, the C major button in the front row is closest to the C7th button in the back row, and the G major button in the front row is closest to the G7th button in the back row.

Each of the chord-playing buttons 12 is slidably, re-

` ciprocably mounted in the piano top 11 so as to be capable of moving downward when depressed. The lower end of each button 12 is connected to a stit wire 28 (FIGURES 2, 4 and 5) which extends downward below the piano top 11. As best seen in FIGURES 4 and 5, each of these wires 2S has its lower end provided with a horizontally extending offset 29 which is pivotally received in an upstanding leg 30 on the corresponding chord-playing lever 31. The individual wires 28 from the respective chord buttons 12 pass freely down between neighboring sounding bars 25, so that neither interferes with the operation of the other. There are eight of the pivoted chord-playing levers 31, one for each chord.

As shown in FIGURE 4, the eight chord-playing levers 31 extend horizontally from side to side across the interior of the piano at a level below that Vof the sounding bars 25. The several levers 31 are in closely positioned, parallel relationship, one behind the other, with each being free to move independentof the others. They are all mounted on a common pivotal axis 31a located at the right side 33 of the piano housing. The eight levers 31 are retained between a pair of spaced rigid elongated members Si) and 51 (FIGURES 2 and 3) which are attached to the respective sides of the piano housing and extend from side-to-side across the piano. The pivot pin 31a for the levers 31 is supported by these members 5d and 51.

Each lever 31 has three depending lingers 32 whose respective positions correspond to the notes of the chord to be played fby that lever. This will be apparent from the schematic showing in FIGURE 5, which shows the respective levers in exploded perspective, and shows the respective musical notes in dotted lines underlying the respective note-playing iingers 32 on the levers. Since the note-playing iingers 32. on the leversare physically positioned in line with the respective notes in the lower octave of the keyboard, it will beapparent that by pivoting each v lever at the right side of the piano, the three depending tingers 32 on each lever 3l will have almost equal downward movement when the lever is depressed.

The manner in which each depending ringer 32 on the lever 31 causes the corresponding musical note to be played is best Villustrated in FIGURE 6. Here it will be seen that the depending finger 32 overlies the free back end 34 of a pivoted actuator 35. The actuator is pivotally supported midway along its length on the tixed pivot rod 24 for the strikers. cludes a curved forwardly extending portion 36 which projects downward and forward from the pivot rod 24 and which has its front end extending upward into the hollowed out recess 17 in the bottom of the corresponding key 15. The forward end of the actuator 35 en gages beneath the key just below the latters recess 18. With this construction, when the lever 31 is depressed, the depending nger 32 pushes the back end 34 of the pivotcd actuator 35 downward. This causes the front portion 36 of this actuator to pivot upward about the rod 24 and force the back end of the corresponding key 15 upward, throwing the rounded head 21 on the striker upward into engagement with the corresponding tone bar 25.

Obviously, with three such depending lingers 32 on each pivotedlever 31, when the lever is depressed three keys will be operated and the corresponding notes sounded simultaneously. Each lever 31 is depressed by pushing down on the corresponding button 12, which forcev is transmitted through the corresponding stiff wire 28 to the corresponding chord lever 31. Each of the three notes in the chord will be sounded with approximately equal force because the spacing of the lever pivot 31a from the vthree depending fingers 32 on each lever 31 insures that This actuator also inpart of the piano top l1 and which overlies the respective .chord-playing buttons 12. The buttons in the respective front and back rows are arranged in laterally offset relationship. Each button is positioned to be operated by a respective individual lever 41. The several levers 41 are pivotally supported at 42 behind the rows of but- ,tons and extend above the buttons forward through openings in the front panel 43 of the auxiliary housing. At

(their forward ends, the respective levers are provided with tabs 44 for engagement by the lingers of the player. .Each lever 41 is provided with a depending portion 45 which rests on top of one of the corresponding keys 12.

With this construction, when the corresponding finger tab 44 on one of the levers 41 is depressed, it moves the corresponding button 12 downward to play the chord in the Same manner as in the first-described embodiment. The arrangement of the finger tabs 44 above the piano top and close to the key strip 13 on the piano proper may be regarded by some users as a more convenient arrangement for playing the chords than is provided by the location of the buttons 12 themselves.

In a third embodiment of this invention, illustrated in FIGURES 8-11, 'the chord-playing buttons are located at the left end of the keyboard and at the same level as the keyboard. Y

In this embodiment, the corresponding parts are given the same reference numerals as in FIGURES 147, with -a prime added, and these parts will not be described in detail again. The parts not shown in FIGURES S-ll, such as the sounding bars, are arranged the same as in FIGURES 1-7. y

The chord-playing buttons 12 are arranged in front and back rows and are located at the keyboard level at theleft end of the keyboard. Each chord button 12 'is connected directly to a corresponding one of the chordplayingv levers 31. As shown in FIGURES 9, l0 and ll,j each lever 31' has an integral, upwardly protruding finger 6G which terminates at its upper end in a horizontal lip 61 andvextends vertically upward therefrom. The buttons are slidably, reciprocably received in a horizontal panel 66' located at the left end of the keyboard and positioned at substantially the same level as the keys themselves.

Each'lever 31' is pivoted at the right side of the piano, as in the previously described embodiments. Also, each lever 31 has three integral depending fingers 32' for jthin, substantially rigid wire having a loop portion 62 wound loosely around thepivot rod 14 for the keys and rotatable thereon. lAn elongated segment 63 of the actuator extends down from one end of the loop portion .62' and terminates at its lower end in a forwardly protruding, horizontal segment 64. The horizontal segment 64'v underlies a depending finger 32 on one or more of the chord-playing levers 3l. The actuator also has a normally horizontal segment 65' which extends rearward from the opposite end of the loop portion 62|' in the hollowed out underside of the key 15. This segment 65' engages beneath the key 15 behind the latters pivot 14. v

In the operation of this embodiment, when one of the chord-playing buttons 12 is depressed, the left end of the corresponding lever 31 is moved downward.. The three depending fingers 32 on that lever push down on the horizontal segments 64' of the corresponding actuators. Each of the latter pivots clockwise in FIGURE 11, with its segment 65 pushing upward on the corresponding key 15 in back of the latters pivot, so that the corresponding musical note is played.

This embodiment is particularly advantageous in sevl eral respects. The location of the chord-playing buttons at the left end of the keyboard and at the keyboard level will probably be considered preferable by most users. Inaddition, the direct connection of these buttons to the chord levers 31' enables the chords to be played in response to only a light touch on the keys. Also, this arrangement is extremely simple mechanically and lends itself to mass production manufacture at low cost.

In the present invention the construction of the chordplaying mechanism by which it lifts the keys to play the corresponding notes, rather than striking the keys from above, is of prime importance. Because of thisnovel principle of operation, the manually-operated chord-playing members, such as buttons, need not be positioned overlying the keyboard, as in prior chord players. instead, they may be positioned at the top of the piano or at one end of the keyboard as shown, completely out of the way of the keyboard. Alternatively, they may be positioned in front of the keyboard, or at any other desired location on the piano because the key-lifting mechanism inherently is adapted to any Such positioning of the linger-operated chord-playing members.

Also, the key lifting arrangement embodied in the present invention is inherently adapted to operate the keys in such a manner that the strikers will be thrown upward to strike the sounding bars with the desired percussion action. In contrast, the chord-playing mechanisms previously proposed either do not have this action or require more complicated and expensive arrangements to achieve this result.

in the illustrated embodiments of the present invention, there is very little change in the construction of the piano proper from the standard toy piano construction. Practically all of the parts in the-present instrument are interchangeable with those on a standard toy piano, thereby reducing the manufacturing costs.

While there have been described in detail herein and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, three presentlyvpreferred embodiments of this invention, it is to be understood that various modifications, omissions and refinements which depart from the disclosed embodiments may be adopted without departing from the spiritv and scope of this invention. For example, t iis invention may be embodied on a larger-sized piano or on a celeste, if desired.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. In a musical instrument having a keyboard made up of a plurality of keys which are pivoted between their ends and which may be operated by depressing them in front of their respective pivots to play the corresponding musical notes, the improvement which comprises: a chord player having a plurality of movable actuators which are operable to lift corresponding keys behind the latters respective pivot to play the corresponding musical notes, and a plurality of individual chord selectors, each operable when played to operate several of said actuators simultaneously to play a chord of the corresponding musical notes.

2. The musical instrument of claim 1 wherein said actuators are pivotally supported between their ends, with the respective portions of said actuators in front of the pivots therefor engaging beneath the corresponding keys and the respective portions of said actuators behind the pivots therefor positioned to be depressed by the respective chord selectors when the latter are operated to play the corresponding chords.

3. In a musical instrument having a housing, a plurality of laterally spaced sounding elements inside the housing, and a keyboard made up of a plurality of keys which may be operated to play the corresponding sounding elements, the improvement whichcomprises: a chord player having a plurality of movable actuators which are positioned to operate corresponding keys to play the respective sounding elements, and a plurality of movable chord selectors having flnger-engageable portions at the outside of the housing and portions which extend from said iinger-engageable portions and pass freely between said sounding elements, each of said chord selectors being aoaarso operable when played to operate several of said actuators simultaneously to play a chord of the musical notes produced by the corresponding sounding elements.

4. In a musical instrument having a keyboard made up of a plurality of keys which are pivotally supported between their ends and which may be operated by depressing their front ends, a plurality of sounding elements, a plurality of strikers pivota-lly Supported behind the pivotal support for the keys and each operable to be thrown upward to strike the corresponding sounding ele ment in response to upward movement of the back end of the corresponding key when the latter is played, and a pivotal support for said strikers, the improvement which comprises: a chord player having a plurality of actuators which are pivotally Supported between their ends on the same pivotal support as said strikers, each of said actua tors having its end in front of said pivotal support disposed beneath a portion of the corresponding key behind the latters pivot, and a plurality of chord selectors, each of which is operable when played to depress portions of a plurality of said actuators which are disposed behind said pivotal support simultaneously to cause said front ends of said last-mentioned actuators to lift up on said portions of the corresponding keys and cause the correspending musical notes to be played. t

5. ln a piano having a housing, a plurality of tone bars in the housing, a keyboard made up of a plurality of keys which are pivotally mounted between their ends and which may be operated by depressing their front ends to play the corresponding tone bars, and a pivotal support for said keys, said housing having a key strip which extends up from the keys above the pivotal support for the latter and a top which extends rearward from said key strip, the improvement which comprises: a chord player comprising a plurality of movable actuators which are positioned to engage beneath the keys behind the pivotal support for thelatter, and a plurality of vmovable chord selectors having finger-engageable portions at the top of the piano housing, each of said chord selectors being operable when its inger-engageable portion is depressed to operate several of said actuators simultaneously to play a chord of the corresponding musical notes.

6. The piano of claim wherein said chord selectors have portions which extend down from said finger-engageable portions and pass vfreely between the tone bars in the housing.

7. In a piano having a housing, a plurality of laterally spaced tone bars inside the housing, a pivotal support inside the housing, a keyboard made up of a plurality of keys which are pivotally supported between their ends on said pivotal support and which may be operated by depressing them in front of said pivotal support to play the corresponding tone bars, said housing having a key strip which extends up from the keys above said pivotal support and a top which extends rearward from said key strip, the improvement which comprises: a chord player comprising a plurality of actuators which are pivotally supported between their ends behind said pivotal support for the keys, each of said actuators having a portion in front. of its pivot which engages beneath a corresponding key behind said pivotal support for the key, each of said actuators having a back end portion disposed behind the pivotal support for the actuator, a plurality of movable chord selectors having ngereengageable portions at said top of the housing and portions which extend down from said tinger-engageable portions and pass freely between saidrtone bars, a corresponding plurality of elongated levers pivoted at the' right side of the housing and coupled to said last-mentioned portions of the chord selectors to be operated thereby, each of said levers having a'plurality of depending ngers which overlie said back end portion of corresponding ones of said actuators so that when the correspondingy chord selector is depressed, a chord of the corresponding musical notes will be played.

8. Ina musical instrument having a keyboard made up of a plurality of keys which are pivoted between their ends and which may be operated by depressing them in front of their respective pivots to play the corresponding musical notes, the improvement which comprises: a chord player comprising a plurality of` movable actuators which are operable to lift the corresponding keys behind the respective pivots of the latter to play the corresponding musical notes, and a plurality of individual movable',V

chord selectors located at the left endof the keyboard and at substantially the lkeyboard level, each of said chord selectors being operable when played to operate several of said actuators simultaneously to play a chord'of the corresponding musical notes.

9. In a piano having a pivotal support, a keyboard made up of a plurality of keys which are pivotedj between their ends on said pivotal support and which may be operated by depressing them in front of said pivotal support to play the corresponding musical notes, the improvement which comprises: a chord player comprising a plurality of finger-operated movable chord selectors located at the left end of the keyboard and' at the keyboard level, a plurality of elongated movable levers pivoted at the right end of the piano and at their left ends being connected to said chord selectors, each of said levers having a plurality of depending lingers positioned according to the corresponding musical notes, and a plurality of actuators pivotally supported between their ends on the same pivotal support as said keys, each of said actuators having a depending portion which extends down from said pivotal support and a forwardly extending portion which extends beneath one of said 'lingers on a corresponding one of said levers, so thatV when said lever is depressed yby depressing the corresponding chord selector its fingers depress the respective forwardly extending portions of the corresponding actuators to move the latter pivotally about said pivotal support, and each actuator having a segment which extends `back from said pivotal support ,and engages beneath the corresponding key behind said pivotal support to lift the key thereat to play the corresponding musical note upon said pivotal movement of the actuator.

10. In a musical instrument having a keyboard made up of a plurality of keys which may be operated by de Y pressing them from above to play the corresponding musical notes, the improvement which comprises: a.' chord player having a plurality of actuators which are operable to play the corresponding keys from beneath, and a plurality of individual chord selectors, Veach of which is l operable when played to operate several of said actuators simultaneously to play a chord of the corresponding musical notes.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS mi we 

